Desensitization and Virginia Tech

Something occurred to me as I listened to radio commentary on the tragedy at Virginia Tech this week. It seems that the people that you regularly see publicly speaking out against the violence and desensitization to violence in America are part of the problem. While they often point out the poor influence of video games, movies, rap music, etc., it seems they are ignorant of the power of the word "but." Or even "and" in some circumstances.

When someone--whether in media or politics (these are the two main contributors, I feel)--expresses their condolences and deepest sympathy in one breath "and" then goes on to talk about how it relates to their stance on a certain political or societal issue, no way am I going to take their sympathy as being sincere. In fact, I think by doing this, they devalue the lives involved by making them worth only as much as their issue or agenda.

THIS is a form of desensitization.

When people see a tragedy and immediately are told that it is just another step towards passing this law, or working towards this goal it takes the focus off of the people involved and off of the hurt and pain that is much more than what passing any law can fix.

You can talk about gun control next week. You can blame strict gun laws that say other students couldn't protect themselves, or you can blame loose gun laws that allowed the killer to obtain his weapons...next week.

I heard Bill O'Reilly speak on the radio about his rational for showing the video the shooter made on his show last night. He was saying that (this is a paraphrase) people need to see evil so they know its real and not some abstract idea, and though he understands that some do not want it out there, his job is to show it.

I understand this. I even think Mr. O'Reilly was sincere in what he said and probably has a better understanding of the way that the people from Va. Tech feel than many others I've heard in the media. "But," I think people could have seen the videos it next week (this especially goes for NBC).

People died, and that is yesterday's news? Life is more valuable than that.

-- Ross Abdallah Alameddine, 20, sophomore from Saugus, Massachusetts.
-- Christopher James Bishop, 35, according to Darmstadt University of Technology in Germany, where he helped run an exchange program.
-- Brian Roy Bluhm, 25, civil engineering graduate student from Stephens City, Virginia. He had previously lived in Iowa, Detroit, Michigan, and Louisville, Kentucky.
-- Ryan Christopher Clark, 22, of Martinez, Georgia, senior majoring in psychology.
-- Austin Michelle Cloyd, sophomore international studies major and member of the honors program from Blacksburg, Virginia. Cloyd and her family previously lived in Champaign, Illinois.
-- Jocelyne Couture-Nowak, French instructor, according to her husband, Jerzy Nowak, the head of the horticulture department at Virginia Tech.
-- Daniel Alejandro Perez Cueva, 21, of Peru, sophomore majoring in international studies. He also had lived in Woodbridge, Virginia.
-- Kevin Granata, engineering science and mechanics professor, according to Ishwar K. Puri, the head of the engineering science and mechanics department.
-- Matthew Gregory Gwaltney, 24, of Chester, Virginia., graduate student in civil and environmental engineering, according to his father and stepmother, Greg and Linda Gwaltney.
-- Caitlin Millar Hammaren, 19, sophomore majoring in international studies from Westtown, New York.
-- Jeremy Michael Herbstritt, 27, civil engineering graduate student from Bellefonte, Pennsylvania.
-- Rachael Hill, 18, of Glen Allen, Virginia, according to her father, Guy Hill.
-- Emily Jane Hilscher, 19-year-old freshman from Woodville, Virginia, majoring in animal and poultry sciences.
-- Jarrett Lee Lane, 22, senior majoring in civil engineering from Narrows, Virginia.
-- Matthew Joseph La Porte, 20, sophomore from Dumont, New Jersey.
-- Henry J. Lee, also known as Henh Ly, 20, first-year student majoring in computer engineering from Roanoke, Virginia. He had enough advanced-placement credits to be considered a sophomore by Virginia Tech.
-- Liviu Librescu, 76, engineering science and mechanics professor who joined the faculty in 1985. Originally from Romania and had also lived in Israel.
-- G.V. Loganathan, 51, civil and environmental engineering professor, according to his brother G.V. Palanivel.
-- Partahi Mamora Halomoan Lumbantoruan, 34, of Indonesia, civil engineering doctoral student.
-- Lauren Ashley McCain, 20, of Hampton, Virginia, freshman international studies major.
-- Daniel Patrick O'Neil, 22, of Lincoln, Rhode Island, first-year graduate student in environmental engineering.
-- Juan Ramon Ortiz, 26, graduate student in civil engineering from Bayamon, Puerto Rico.
-- Minal Hiralal Panchal, 26, of Mumbai, India, graduate student in architecture.
-- Erin Peterson, 18, of Chantilly, Virginia, an international studies major, according to her father, Grafton Peterson.
-- Michael Steven Pohle, Jr., 23, of Flemington, New Jersey, senior majoring in biology.
-- Julia Kathleen Pryde, 23, graduate student in biological systems engineering from Middletown, New Jersey.
-- Mary Karen Read, 19, freshman from Annandale, Virginia.
-- Reema Joseph Samaha, 18, freshman from Centreville, Virginia.
-- Waleed Mohammed Shaalan, 32, of Zagazig, Egypt, doctoral student in civil engineering.
-- Leslie Sherman, sophomore history and international studies student from Springfield, Virginia, according to her grandmother Gerry Adams.
-- Maxine Turner, 22, senior majoring in chemical engineering from Vienna, Virginia., according to her father, Paul Turner.
-- Nicole White, 20, junior majoring in international studies from Smithfield, Virginia, according to a family statement released by the Suffolk, Virginia, Police Department.

(list from http://freeinternetpress.com/story.php?sid=11407)

Global Warming Y2K

I'm going to do it. I don't know why--I probably shouldn't--but...here it is:

I hope you all still have your Y2K survival kits, because they'll come in handy once again as we prepare for the great environmental disaster that is......wait for it.......Global Warming.

In case you were wondering, I enjoy sarcasm. I enjoy people that are sarcastic, I like being sarcastic, I like reading Paul when he's sarcastic.

I have nothing new to offer, so I'll just give you some bits that I'm sure you're familiar with (if you're not, you should be).

"They were experiencing temperatures that weren't expected with global warming," said Atwood, who admitted the irony of extreme cold cancelling the global warming expedition. "But one of the things we see with global warming is unpredictability." (http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/176465/climate_change_alarmist_blames_frostbite.html)

That was a quote given to the associated press by a global warming scientist who was headed to the North Pole to prove the effects of global warming. What I want to know is what we are supposed to be looking for, and how do we know when we find it? If global warming effects are unpredictable, how do we know what effects are natrual and what effects are due to man's (or cow's) involvement in the environment?

I think we have a resposibility to the earth God created...but I think truth is important (yes, even if it is inconvenient), and using falsehoods and politics to push an agenda is wrong--whether it has some positive side-effects or not.

For one thing, it is hard for me to dismiss historical climate change as being irrelevant (whether you say it is, or just treat it like it is), and there are someother things that make me think. Things like global warming on other planets, and scientists saying "no, we don't all agree" after I've been told that they do.

So, check these out:

• http://www.geelongadvertiser.com.au/article/2007/03/27/2432_news.html
• http://washingtontimes.com/commentary/20070324-100653-4350r.htm

Quest for a hippo

I've been gone for a while, so, if you noticed, I apologize. I'm back now...for a while.

I want to let you in on a blog recently started by a friend of mine who is planning a trip to Mozambique. There's some good stuff on there and you will appreciate it I'm sure. Here's the url: quest4ahippo.blogspot.com/

Environmental Indulgences

In case you don't know, indulgences were something offered by the Catholic church in the middle ages. They (that is, Roman Catholics) say now that the practice was misunderstood (and it was clarified by Pope Pius V in 1567), but an indulgence was basically something a person could purchase from the church in expectation that their sins would not count against them for the term of the indulgence.

So, now, with this understanding get ready for a run-on sentence:

If you're feeling guilty for ruining the environment driving around those 4-wheeled ozone killing machines, you can now buy a bumper sticker to free you from your guilt and let other people know that, yes, you are destroying the environment--but you are aware of it and you are offsetting the environmental damage you are causing by giving someone else money to put towards environmentally friendly energy.

I call them Environmental Indulgences:

http://www.terrapass.com/road/whatyouget.html

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,195195,00.html

http://www.ecobusinesslinks.com/carbon_offset_wind_credits_carbon_reduction.htm

I first looked into this when I heard about performers and presenters at the Academy Awards (by the way, did anyone actually watch it?) receiving "a Year of Carbon Balanced Living, combining an original Simon Pearce glass sculpture with 100,000 lbs of CO2 reductions from TerraPass' suite of verified clean energy projects." (from the press release)

Ha, ha, ha, ha...........okay, sorry.

You know you're living the good life when you can stand up on a soap box and complain about other people ruining the environment and then jump on your private jet feeling guilt free.

Idol meat and the evil of christian rock music.

Recently I studied and taught on the second part of 1 Corinthians 6 (v 12-20)--the "everything is permissible" passage. There are many interesting situations we find ourselves in when trying to live a Godly life. Go too far one way and we become so liberal that there is no difference between us and the world, go too far the other way and we can become legalistic to a Pharisaical degree. The middle ground is the hardest place to be.

I just wasted the last hour looking at a website that I consider to be a bit on the "legalistic" side. (I don't remember how I got there...I googled something and this page looked interesting) The first page of the site that I looked at had to do with exposing the "evils" of "christian rock". First, I must give credit to the author who said something to the effect that he didn't think that most of the christian rock artists were purposefully going against God (but they were nonetheless), and that most of them were saved. I was okay with this statement (at least he wasn't condemning them to hell)--the rest, not so much. The site declared any "rock music" (I'm not really sure how they define "rock") as being of Satan & there were personal attacks on several artists in the Christian market (Point of Grace, Michael W. Smith, Third Day, etc). The author took time to point out articles and interviews that he felt showed the artist's spiritual inconsistencies, and he somehow managed to find satanic symbols strewn throughout the cover and liner art of every artist in the CCM market.

Basically, I got somewhat frustrated. Some of the points the author made about the faults of the Christian recording industry were true--it's no more perfect or less corrupt than the secular industry, and it should be (though most of the christian labels are run by secular corporations now). But I found his stance to be inconsistent when he didn't go into depth about the hypocrisy in the southern gospel industry (which there is plenty to be found--especially if you go back in history to southern gospel's heyday).

From my standpoint, one of the first things that discredits anyone's claims to speak the truth, is to see them fail to apply the "truth" in a consistent manner. If you struggle with the idea of rock music being okay, rest assured that there is nothing in scripture that speaks specifically about the evil of any genre of music. However, if you're still not comfortable w/ it, don't listen to it--but don't judge those that do.

Romans 14:3 "The man who eats everything must not look down on him who does not, and the man who does not eat everything must not condemn the man who does, for God has accepted him" (NIV)
Romans 14:14 "As one who is in the Lord Jesus, I am fully convinced that no food is unclean in itself. But if anyone regards something as unclean, then for him it is unclean. " (NIV)

If you fail to see the application of these verses in regards to rock music, consider this. The issue Romans speaks of is the eating of meat sacrificed to idols. Paul says that God is okay with someone who wants to consume the meat that had been sacrificed to idols (he warns against not making your brother stumble, but says that eating the meat is not inherantly bad). If you look at rock music from the view of those who say it is "the devils music"...well, it was the devil's meat.

1 Corinthians 10:29-31 "For why should my freedom be judged by another's conscience? If I take part in the meal with thankfulness, why am I denounced because of something I thank God for? So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God." (NIV)

I would be interested to know if the author of this article celebrated Christmas, as it is a pagan holiday (it was Christianized around 4AD by christians in Rome. They decided to celebrate Jesus birth to coincide with a pagan celebration so they could party, too--okay maybe that's stretching it a little, but nonetheless). I would also be interested in knowing if this individual sings hymns in church to the tune of old drinking songs.

Hmmm...well, now you know why I have a blog, it keeps me from writing less-than-loving notes to people I disagree with. For everything that I could point out that's wrong about someone else, there's probably 10 things they could point out in me. It's a good thing we have a God who is good enough to work in things like patience and forgiveness into his plan-cause I need it.

Good Music

I thought I would let you (whoever happens to stumble upon this page) in on a few good CDs that I've recently aquired.

1. MeWithoutYou - "Brother, Sister" This is an amazing cd. I listened to their first cd...well a few songs...when it first came out, then put it back on the shelf. Later I happened to catch them live on a Tooth & Nail tour--and they were incredible. Every since I've been a fan. I must tell you, though, this one didn't immediately jump out at me. But when I sat and read the lyrics sheet along with Aaron "singing"...it was a great time of worship for me. Really. It's not worship music, but the truths just hit me in the right place. Beautiful poetry, check it out.

2. Jars of Clay - "Good Monsters" I had this one setting on the shelf for...well...I got it free as a pre-release, so it was before September of 2006. Basically, Jars have always been just okay (in my opinion), I've never been a big fan, so I didn't even listen to it until today. Now, I really like it. If I were to compare it to their previous work, it would be like comparing the Beatles "Sgt. Peppers" to their "Hard Days Night". It doesn't sound like their old stuff, though the best part of the Jars sound is still there, just enough for you to maybe know it's them if you listen hard enough. It's good.

The Christian and Politics - The Hardest Thing

There are a lot of people that have opinions about where the church's place is in politics, or what "responsibilities" or rights a christian has regarding politics. I would say that most of these opinions are wrong--but that's only because I disagree with them and if I didn't think that my opinion was right...well, then it wouldn't be my opinion.

So, I have my thoughts and opinions, but if I really care about truth, I must always challenge my own opinions to see if they stand up.

Recently I was in a challenging study of 1 Timothy 2, which starts off with the following four verses: "I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone--for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. This is good, and pleases God our Savior, who wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth." (NIV)

Requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving...for all those in authority. Hmmm...I don't like it. One of the most irritating people in the world to me is Hillary Clinton. Okay, irritating is a nice word. To be really honest, I think she's evil...I think the fact that anyone would think of supporting her for president is preposterous. But I am to pray for everyone (v1), and specifically all those in authority (v2). You might argue that "she is not directly in authority over me," which may be true, but even if you try to be legalistic, she still fits the "everyone" category in verse 1 (if you're okay with Mrs. Clinton, then just insert some other person that you can't stand).

So, I was thinking about the idea of Hillary being our next US president (which made me cringe almost as much as the thought of Barack being in any kind of power...I'll talk about that some other time), and how Paul speaks to Timothy about offering prayers of Thanksgiving. Wow. This is gonna take some work.

Consider what kind of leadership was in power when Paul was writing this letter. They certainly were not as open to Christianity on a whole nearly as much as the US is even today. Yet Paul's position was to be in payer for the authorities, on behalf of the authorities, and in thankfulness for the authorities that God had put into place.

This is tough, but it's what I'm called to do.

It's also interesting to consider the last part of verse 2: "that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness." It seems like this purpose is not always what drives our political actions, either...but that's another long blog, so I'll leave it for later.